“The kids have just really rallied around him,” she said. “It’s really cool to see how they’ve supported him.”

The experience has been one in a series of milestones for Caulden and his family. Getting to the point where he could be a part of the team has required a lot of work and dedication, said his mother, Jennifer Darocki.

After developing normally for about 18 months, he suddenly stopped speaking. It was then that his parents found out he had regressive autism, a severe form of the disorder.

“He lost all language and pretty much just sat and rocked,” she said. “This was a kid that they basically told me, ‘You need to put him in a home; he’s never going to function.’”

Autism encompasses a wide spectrum of developmental disorders that affect brain development and communication skills. Severe forms of the disorder can make it difficult or impossible for children to interact with others.

“It’s a very isolating illness, because these kids can’t play with other kids,” Darocki said.

When she found out, Darocki stopped working so she could spend her days helping her son.

Because he had a difficult time looking anyone in the eyes, which is typical of the disorder, she trained him to be able to by holding French fries in front of her eyes and not giving it to him until he would make eye contact. Now, he has no problem with it, she said.

He has also learned to read and communicate with an iPad even though he still can’t speak.

And now, after only about two months on the cross country team, Caulden is already more coordinated, calmer in class and better at interacting with his peers, Darocki said.

“It has been a really good gateway for him to feel like part of a team and not feel isolated,” she said.

His stepdad usually runs with him to keep him on track, and his teammates often backtrack after making it to the finish line to end the race with him.

The experience of running with Caulden and another student on the team with special needs has made the team even tighter, said Cody Roberts, an eighth-grader on the team.

“It makes us feel all together,” he said.

Caulden recently told his mom why he likes running.

“It makes me feel more like me,” he wrote.

Darocki said she got the idea to sign her son up for the cross country team after seeing how well he did in school jog-a-thons.

She said she hopes his story will inspire other parents of children with special needs to pursue activities that they may enjoy and that allow them to interact with others.

“It’s really so wonderful to be able to see him be a part of things like this,” she said.